History of the Historical Folklore Society of Corfu and Its Museum

The Historical Folklore Society of Corfu (as it was renamed on 24 March 1990) was founded by the retired schoolteacher Nikos Paktitis, who began studying folklore in the 1950s. His dedication to preserving local traditions led to the establishment of a society devoted to collecting, documenting, and promoting the folk culture of Corfu.

Initially, Paktitis worked independently, gathering historical and folkloric material. Later, together with a group of fellow folklore enthusiasts, he founded the Historical Folklore Society of Central Corfu. The Society published the short-lived magazine Kerkyraia (“The Corfiot Woman”), and two years later it was officially recognized as a cultural association under the same name.

From that point onward, the Society pursued a systematic effort to establish an institution representing the traditions of the rural communities of Central Corfu, particularly the region known as Mesi (Central Corfu), as reflected in its original name. In addition to founding the museum, the Society sought to support initiatives dedicated to the research, documentation, preservation, and promotion of the island’s historical and folkloric heritage.

The Museum Building

Until October 1987, the museum was housed on the ground floor of a single-storey building located in the center of Sinarades village. However, the space proved too limited and did not reflect the traditional character of the collections. The museum was therefore relocated to a beautiful traditional Corfiot house in the Agios Ioannis neighborhood of Sinarades, where it remains today.

Museum Collections

The museum presents material representing the cultural heritage of Central Corfu. An exterior staircase built from local marble leads to the first floor, which includes the entrance hall (portego), dining room, kitchen, and bedroom. These rooms have been furnished to recreate a typical middle-class Corfiot household of the late nineteenth century. An internal staircase leads to the upper floor, which houses the museum library and archives.

The museum’s collections include:

• Traditional Bedroom, furnished with authentic nineteenth-century furniture, textiles, embroidered linens, religious icons, and wedding wreaths.
• Agricultural Tools Collection, including hoes, axes, pruning tools, vineyard implements, sheep-shearing scissors, and livestock bells.
• Traditional Corfiot Costumes, featuring authentic men’s and women’s garments and accessories.
• Domestic Utensils Collection, comprising ceramic, porcelain, copper, iron, enamel, wooden, and stone household objects.
• Ecclesiastical Collection, including vestments, icons, oil lamps, censers, candleholders, and crosses.
• Traditional Crafts Collection, displaying weaving, flax processing, carpentry, and stonemasonry tools, including a traditional loom.
• Weights and Measures Collection, with historic scales, balances, measuring vessels, and traditional measuring units.
• Olive Oil Containers Collection.
• Keys and Locks Collection.
• Traditional Cobbler’s Workshop, complete with original tools and equipment.
• Fishing Collection, including traditional fishing equipment and a woven papyrus boat.
• Karagiozis Shadow Theatre Collection, featuring shadow puppets and performance material.
• Children’s Corner, with children’s drawings, toys, and hunting-related objects.
• Paintings, engravings, photographs, and reproductions of artworks.
• Corfiot Ceramics Collection.

The museum preserves more than 200 catalogued objects, excluding its books and archival documents. Approximately two-thirds of the collection consists of donations from private individuals, churches, and local communities, while the remainder has been acquired through purchases. Most donors come from Sinarades and neighboring villages of Central Corfu. Their contributions have enabled the museum to build an important collection of furniture, clothing, tools, household objects, books, and historical documents.

Milestones

Historical Folklore Society of Corfu (HFSC)

• 19 March 1978 – Foundation of the Historical Folklore Society of Central Corfu.
• 24 May 1980 – Official recognition by the Court of First Instance as a cultural association.
• 29 August 1982 – Opening of the museum in a privately owned building in Sinarades village square.
• 17 March 1985 – Purchase of a permanent building for the museum.
• 1 March 1989 – Opening of the museum in its current, Society-owned building in Sinarades.
• 8 August 1991 – Renaming of the Society as the Historical Folklore Society of Corfu.
• November 2020 – Founding member of the Ionian Islands Museums Network.
• 31 January 2022 – Registration of the Society in the official Registry of the Hellenic Ministry of Culture.

Source:
Dimitra Kardakari

The History of the Historical Folklore Society of Corfu and Its Museums.

Member of the Board of Directors (February 2013 – February 2015).